Top-spec consumer PCs group test
(Armari, Compaq, Dell, Evesham, Mesh, Time)
Introduction
Armari - R850-P4 1.4GHz
Compaq - Presario 7EL 7000T
Dell - Dimension 4100
Evesham - 1200 GTS Ultra
Mesh - Matrix 1100T
Time - 1200-7XL Professional
Features table
Verdict
Features table
(26/03/2001)
| Model | Armari R850-P4 1.4GHz | Compaq Presario 7EL 7000T | Dell Dimension 4100 1GHz | Evesham 1200 GTS Ultra | Mesh Matrix 1100T | Time 1200-7XL Professional |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier type | Direct | Dealer | Direct | Direct | Direct | Direct |
| Telephone | 020 8993 4111 | 0845 270 4000 | 0870 907 5667 | 08707 287070 | 08707 297644 | 01282 777555 |
| Price (inc. VAT) | £3,750 | £1,299 | £2,400 | £1,761 | £1,761 | £2,349 |
| Warranty | 1 year on-site | 1 year on-site | 1 year on-site + 2 yr collect and return | 2 years on-site + 1 year back to base | 1 year on-site + 2 years back to base, parts and labour | 1 year back to base |
| Processor | Pentium 4 1.5GHz | Pentium III 800 | Pentium III 1GHz | Athlon 1.2GHz | Athlon 1.1GHz | Athlon 1.1GHz |
| Memory bus speed (MHz) | 400/800 (Rambus) | 133 | 133 | 133 | 133 | 133 |
| Supplied memory (MB) | 128 | 128 | 256 | 256 | 256 | 256 |
| Maximum memory | 2GB | 768MB | 1GB | 1.5GB | 1.5GB | 1.5GB |
| Secondary cache (KB) | 256 | 256 | 256 | 256 | 256 | 256 |
| Hard drive | 1 x 42.8GB + 1 x 28.6GB IBM | 27.9GB | 37.2GB Western Digital | 38.1GB Maxtor | 28.6GB IBM | 41.5GB IBM |
| CD/ DVD drive | Pioneer DVD 16x | Compaq DVD 8x | Samsung DVD 12x | Pioneer DVD 16x | Pioneer DVD 16x | Pioneer DVD 16x |
| Other drives and devices | Plextor CD-RW, floppy, V90 modem, Pinnacle DV500 | Floppy, V90 modem, Ethernet adapter | Sony 12 x 8 x 32 CD-RW, floppy, V90 modem | Samsung 8 x 8 x 32 CD-RW, floppy, V90 modem | TEAC 4 x 4 x 32 CD-RW, floppy, V90 modem | LG 4 x 4 x 32 CD-RW, floppy, V90 modem |
| Free expansion slots | 0 x ISA, 2 x PCI | 0 x ISA, 2 x PCI | 0 x ISA, 2 x PCI | 0 x ISA, 3 x PCI | 0 x ISA, 3 x PCI | 0 x ISA, 2 x PCI |
| Monitor | 19 inch Mitsubishi Diamond Plus 9l | 19 inch Compaq MV940 | 17-inch Dell 1701FP | 19-inch NEC Multisync 95F | 19 inch Mitsubishi DPro 920 | 19 inch Samsung SM 900NF |
| Graphics adapter | 64MB 3D Blaster GF2Ultra | 32MB nVidia Riva TNT2 | 64MB nVidia GF2 Ultra | 64MB 3D Power GF2 Ultra | 64MB ATI Radeon VIVO | 64MB Hercules GF2 GTS |
| Ports: Serial, USB, Parallel, other | 1, 2, 1, 2 x 1394 | 1, 4, 1, 2 x 1394 | 1, 2, 1, 3 x 1394 | 2, 2, 1, 0 | 2, 5, 1, 0 | 2, 5, 1, 0 |
| Mouse | Logitech WingMan | Logitech Pilot Plus | MS Intelli- mouse | Logitech Pilot Plus | MS Intelli- mouse | Logitech iFeel |
| Bundled software | Windows ME, Premiere, Free FX, miro INSTANT, Title Deko, Spice Rack, ACID music, Minerva Impression, Hollywood FX, DVD/ CD-RW/ modem/ sound utils | Windows ME, Word 2000, Works 2000, McAfee AV, 8-10 points of 'Software Choice', DVD/ modem/ sound utils | Windows ME, Word 2000 Suite, DVD/ CD-RW/ modem/ sound utils | Windows ME, SmartSuite Millennium, DVD/ CD-RW/ modem/ sound utils | Windows ME, Works Suite 2000, DVD/ CD-RW/ modem/ sound utils | Windows ME, Works Suite 2000, Encarta, Standard Pack, Exec Pack Premium Games Pack (inc Quake III) |
| Sound card | SB Live! Player | Sound Blaster 128 | Turtle Beach Santa Cruz | SB Live! 5.1 | SB Live! 5.1 | SB Live! 1024 |
| Speakers | Cambridge SW DTT2200 | JBL Platinum | Altec Lansing ADA885 | Cambridge SW DT2200 | Cambridge SW DT2200 | Labtec Edge 418 |
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